Adding the term "Vanaspati” (meaning botanical) to the name of the Veermata Jijabai Bhonsale Udyan va Pranisangrahalaya "has given the botanical garden iron-clad protection — its trees, its heritage layout, the space occupied by it — have all got added armor. No bureaucrat or power broker can ever have the temerity to say, as they did so often in the past, that Rani Bagh is ‘only’ a garden,” stated Save Rani Bagh Botanical Garden Foundation trustees Hutokshi Rustomfram and Shubhada Nikharge in communication with Parsiana on January 8, 2023. "For nearly 16 years, Rani Bagh has been our karm bhoomi (Sanskrit term for land of action). (Our) toil and passion for Rani Bagh is not only because it is an environmental protection issue but also an egalitarian one, affecting literally thousands of common citizens who visit each day.”
Hutokshi Rustomfram (l) and Shubhada Nikharge
From l, 1st row: View of the botanical garden; display panel;
2nd row: trustees Katie Bagli, Nikharge, Sheila Tanna, Rustomfram, Hutoxi Arethna
3rd row: Cyrus Guzder, Dr Pheroza Godrej, D. M. Sukthankar, Sumaira Abdulali,
Nayana Kathpalia; below, r: audience
Of the 60-acre public space, the botanical garden occupies 63% of the total area whereas the zoo segment occupies 18%. This change comes on the 160th anniversary of the founding of the garden by the Agri Horticultural Society of Western India, states a press note from the Foundation. Originally named Victoria Garden, Rani Bagh has "the largest agglomeration of trees in the island city with widest species diversity — 4,131 trees of 256 species belonging to 54 botanical families; 86 tree species are officially declared rare,” states the write-up.
"The new official name [Veermata Jijabai Bhonsale Vanaspati Udyan va Pranisangrahalaya (Botanical Garden and Zoo)] will generate greater awareness among citizens who can take pride in (the) official Grade II-B heritage status… Like other international cities that promote their botanical gardens, Bombay too can now take pride in and acknowledge its very own sole heritage botanical garden.” Additionally, the trustees stated that "responding to the representation made by the Foundation, the Development Plan 2014-34 for Bombay has accorded due importance and recognition to the park.”
An official proposal from the Foundation to the municipal commissioner in March 2022 set the ball rolling. At a meeting in May, Rustomfram, Nikharge and former state chief secretary and chairman of the Mumbai Heritage Conservation Committee, D. M. Sukthankar met assistant municipal commissioner Ashwini Bhide "who readily agreed to add the word ‘vanaspati’ to the official name and also agreed that this should be done in the year 2022.” Municipal commissioner I. S. Chahal signed the proposal in
October. Accordingly, on December 12, 2022 the changed name took effect. The Foundation has worked for the past 15 years to "preserve, protect and promote” the Grade II-B heritage place (see "The green queens,” Parsiana, April 21, 2017).
"We plan to usher in many positive changes giving due prominence to the botanical garden of Rani Bagh in 2023,” note Rustomfram and Nikharge.
In addition to Rustomfram and Nikharge, the other three trustees are Katie Bagli, Hutoxi Arethna and Sheila Tanna.
The goodwill towards Rani Bagh "and the sheer joy of celebrating 160 years of the island city’s largest green public space and largest agglomeration of trees was palpable” at an event held on November 19, 2022 at The K. R. Cama Oriental Institute to commemorate the anniversary of the gardens, noted Rustomfram and Nikharge.
The evening began with the screening of the Foundation’s short documentary film, Rani Bagh — Mumbai’s Heritage Botanical Garden. "Visuals of Rani Bagh’s breathtaking vistas and majestic trees set the tone for the function.” Tanna presented a report "sketching a broad arc of the Foundation’s work and struggle over the past 15 years and more.”
Rustomfram introduced and thanked all speakers for their support to the Foundation’s struggle "to protect the botanical garden from the forces of so-called redevelopment.” Guest of honor Sukthankar "was as always highly articulate and forceful,” noted the trustees. Other speakers were OVAL Trust trustee, Nayana Kathpalia; environmentalist and heritage expert, Cyrus Guzder; president emeritus, National Society of the Friends of the Trees, Dr Pheroza Godrej; founder, Awaaz Foundation, Sumaira Abdulali and president, Bombay Natural History Society, Bittu Sahgal. A congratulatory message from former municipal commissioner Sharad Kale, a steadfast supporter of the Foundation’s work, was read out. A commemorative table calendar, brought out by the Foundation, showcasing the botanical, cultural and heritage-related aspects of the garden was distributed among the attendees.